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Mahasamar #2
Adhikar: Mahasamar - 2 (1)
...
425 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2011
13 people are currently reading
280 people want to read
About the author
नरेंद्र कोहली, Narendra Kohli
117 books104 followersPadmashree Narendra Kohli is one of the most eminent and well-known Hindi writers of our times. His novel based on the Ram-Katha, Abhyuday, shifted the course of Hindi novel-writing. Another of his novels, Mahasamar, based on the Pandava-katha went on to become just as popular. His novel-series, Todo Kara Todo is considered the greatest and foremost novel in any language on the life of Swami Vivekananda. Abhigyan, Vasudev, Sharnam, Aatmaswikriti, Varunaputri, Sagar-Manthan, Ahalya etc. are his other well-known works. Apart from the Padmashree, he has also been awarded the Hindi Akademi award; Delhi Salaka Samman; Uttar Pradesh Hindi Sansthaan award; Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Samman, Lucknow; K.K. Birla Foundation award; Vyasa Samman, New Delhi; Madhya Pradesh government and Bhopal’s Maithili Sharan Gupt Rashtriya Samman, among numerous other honours.
डॉ॰ नरेन्द्र कोहली (जन्म ६ जनवरी १९४०, निधन १७ अप्रैल २०२१, चैत्र शुक्ल पंचमी, नवरात्रि) प्रसिद्ध हिन्दी साहित्यकार हैं। उन्होंने साहित्य के सभी प्रमुख विधाओं (यथा उपन्यास, व्यंग्य, नाटक, कहानी) एवं गौण विधाओं (यथा संस्मरण, निबंध, पत्र आदि) और आलोचनात्मक साहित्य में अपनी लेखनी चलाई है। उन्होंने शताधिक श्रेष्ठ ग्रंथों का सृजन किया है। हिन्दी साहित्य में 'महाकाव्यात्मक उपन्यास' की विधा को प्रारंभ करने का श्रेय नरेंद्र कोहली को ही जाता है। पौराणिक एवं ऐतिहासिक चरित्रों की गुत्थियों को सुलझाते हुए उनके माध्यम से आधुनिक सामाज की समस्याओं एवं उनके समाधान को समाज के समक्ष प्रस्तुत करना कोहली की अन्यतम विशेषता है। कोहलीजी सांस्कृतिक राष्ट्रवादी साहित्यकार हैं, जिन्होंने अपनी रचनाओं के माध्यम से भारतीय जीवन-शैली एवं दर्शन का सम्यक् परिचय करवाया है। जनवरी, २०१७ में उन्हें पद्मश्री से सम्मानित किया गया।
डॉ॰ नरेन्द्र कोहली (जन्म ६ जनवरी १९४०, निधन १७ अप्रैल २०२१, चैत्र शुक्ल पंचमी, नवरात्रि) प्रसिद्ध हिन्दी साहित्यकार हैं। उन्होंने साहित्य के सभी प्रमुख विधाओं (यथा उपन्यास, व्यंग्य, नाटक, कहानी) एवं गौण विधाओं (यथा संस्मरण, निबंध, पत्र आदि) और आलोचनात्मक साहित्य में अपनी लेखनी चलाई है। उन्होंने शताधिक श्रेष्ठ ग्रंथों का सृजन किया है। हिन्दी साहित्य में 'महाकाव्यात्मक उपन्यास' की विधा को प्रारंभ करने का श्रेय नरेंद्र कोहली को ही जाता है। पौराणिक एवं ऐतिहासिक चरित्रों की गुत्थियों को सुलझाते हुए उनके माध्यम से आधुनिक सामाज की समस्याओं एवं उनके समाधान को समाज के समक्ष प्रस्तुत करना कोहली की अन्यतम विशेषता है। कोहलीजी सांस्कृतिक राष्ट्रवादी साहित्यकार हैं, जिन्होंने अपनी रचनाओं के माध्यम से भारतीय जीवन-शैली एवं दर्शन का सम्यक् परिचय करवाया है। जनवरी, २०१७ में उन्हें पद्मश्री से सम्मानित किया गया।
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
September 26, 2014
The book excels in character development and exploring the psyche.
Pace is good, power struggle between siblings is correctly shown , however Author has serious limitations in describing the War/Battle scenes.
Till now , Every major combat has been limited to just a paragraph.
That seems the only blemish in this otherwise fantastic book and series.
Pace is good, power struggle between siblings is correctly shown , however Author has serious limitations in describing the War/Battle scenes.
Till now , Every major combat has been limited to just a paragraph.
That seems the only blemish in this otherwise fantastic book and series.
April 29, 2024
Almost everything that I mentioned in my review of the previous book applies here too. In addition to it I just wanted to comment on the characterization of the main players in the conflict.
The author opted for a very linear representation of the Kuru princes. The Pandavas are depicted as entirely virtuous, while the Kauravas are portrayed as irredeemably evil. None of the princes, except perhaps Arjun, are afforded any depth of character. This simplistic portrayal sharply contrasts with the multidimensional depiction of all the other characters, specially Drona in this part.
One aspect that particularly struck me was the treatment of Karna. While I don't oppose portraying Karna as a negative character, the narrative appears indifferent to the injustices he endured due to his background, yet it vehemently condemns his actions. This hypocrisy did not sit well with me. Karna may or may not have been inherently evil, but his experiences of discrimination are undeniable, unjustified, and undoubtedly shaped his character and actions. In my view, Kohliji missed a golden opportunity here to present Karna in a more complex light, where his flaws are evident yet he remains a compelling character, akin to the Joker in the movie The Dark Knight.
The characterization of the Kauravas and Pandavas is the sole flaw I find in an otherwise masterful piece of literature. However, I'm inclined to overlook it as this series is a novelization based on the Mahabharata, granting the author the liberty to interpret characters and situations as they see fit.
The author opted for a very linear representation of the Kuru princes. The Pandavas are depicted as entirely virtuous, while the Kauravas are portrayed as irredeemably evil. None of the princes, except perhaps Arjun, are afforded any depth of character. This simplistic portrayal sharply contrasts with the multidimensional depiction of all the other characters, specially Drona in this part.
One aspect that particularly struck me was the treatment of Karna. While I don't oppose portraying Karna as a negative character, the narrative appears indifferent to the injustices he endured due to his background, yet it vehemently condemns his actions. This hypocrisy did not sit well with me. Karna may or may not have been inherently evil, but his experiences of discrimination are undeniable, unjustified, and undoubtedly shaped his character and actions. In my view, Kohliji missed a golden opportunity here to present Karna in a more complex light, where his flaws are evident yet he remains a compelling character, akin to the Joker in the movie The Dark Knight.
The characterization of the Kauravas and Pandavas is the sole flaw I find in an otherwise masterful piece of literature. However, I'm inclined to overlook it as this series is a novelization based on the Mahabharata, granting the author the liberty to interpret characters and situations as they see fit.
December 12, 2016
This book begins with the Pandavas' entry into Hastinpura and ends with the crowning of Yuthishtira as the Yuvraj.We get glimpses of how Little Duryodhana bullies his cousins and how he takes his cue from his parents even though the latter never said a word against the Pandavas in public.Drona's entry is a masterstroke.I do not support the author's take that King Drupad did not purposefully insult Drona.There are no Gods in this book and the Pandavas are not their sons,but rather the sons of men who have symbolically represented the Gods.Which takes away half the fun.And poor Karna gets a harsh treatment from the author as well.He's a liar and a cheat who gained knowledge unlawfully.The author does a good job of delving into the philosophy of the Mahabharata, but it would have been better if the Kauravas were not painted as the blackest of the black and the Pandavas as the embodiment of all virtues.
February 8, 2021
This series just does not stop mesmerising. While Part 1 covered the story right from Shantanu to Kunti, this book takes the story forward to ascension of Yudhistira as the crown prince of Hastinapur. Adhikaar is about the philosophy and tenets of Ruling the kingdoms and how it is not about ruling everyone but about ruling who one cares about or calls to be a part of स्व:
This book also marks the entry of Krishna and his perspective on matters that matter.
So excited to be able to read it in Hindi and get introduced to this piece of sheer brilliance.
This book also marks the entry of Krishna and his perspective on matters that matter.
So excited to be able to read it in Hindi and get introduced to this piece of sheer brilliance.
February 15, 2016
This one was more of a narrative than Book-1 (Bandhan). Would have really loved to get inside the mind of the characters more.
June 22, 2021
The second part of Mahasamar series covers the story from Kunti and her sons' arrival to Hastinapur to declaration of Yudhisthir as the crowned prince. This book is very weak as compared to its brilliant predecessor. Most of it works as a filler and drags story a lot. There are very few redeeming factors and some characterization which is good, but apart from this the book is a collosal disappointment.
Some redeeming factors which makes this book a little bit readable includes the characterization of Dron. I have never read this much in depth study of Dron's character. If broken down the character of Dron can be divided into several parts like first a seeker of knowledge who is also a struggling householder and trying to make the ends meet, then he becomes an opportunist and a man who seeks revenge and power, and in the end indirectly he becomes a man who is also a reason behind the catastrophic war. In some parts he is also presented as a counterpart of Dhritrashtra who solely focuses on his son's welfare, but in these parts what differs him from Dhritrashtra is that his conscience is not as blind as Dhritarashtra's and he is constantly at war with his conscience.
What made the first part of this series a great book was inclusion of politics in the course of events which substituted the flawless character development added positively to the flow of the story. But in this part politics enters the picture in the very last part of the book when Yadav power comes in play and this part is the most interesting part of the book. Incendents in the book are needlessly over-stretched and they are very boring. Like the incident where Bheem is poisoned by Duryodhan and thrown into the river this incident was so much dragged that after a point it becomes very boring and in this incident I also felt that dialogues were also very repetitive and uninteresting. Other problems lies in the characterization of Pandavs and Kauravs. They are nothing more than cardboard cutouts in the book and nothing related to them was remotely interesting. Yudhisthir is shown very imbecile and he is very disinterested in being a king and even making political alliances the only thing that's shown dear to him is his "spotless" image. He is shown so stupid that it look like the Yadav power backing up Pandavs are the puppeteers who want to make Yudhishthir king for their own good. Bheem is shown as glutton who always eats and loves excercise and sleeping which is very cliché. I think no one can give justice to the character of Bheem as S.L. Bhyrappa did in 'Parv', it was the only book based on the Mahabharat which showed Bheem as a multi-dimensional character. Nakul and Sehdev are non-existing and barely gets any role to play in the book. Only Arjun gets a decent character development among the five brothers. His quest for a teacher who quenches his thirst for knowledge is wonderfully shown and I hope this character troupe is carried forward in future books.
In an interview Kohliji said that for him Karn is the villian in the Mahabharat and not the glorified hero he is commonly portrayed. When I heard this in his interview I was excited to read his take on Karn. But all of my excitement was destroyed when I read the unreasonably harsh and out of logic character development he gives to Karn in this book. I mean Karn was not a perfect man and even I feel that sometimes he is over-glorified and there is no problem with the idea of making him a villain. But making someone a villain takes the reasons which made him so not the excuses which author gives are nothing short of lame and despicable. Rather than being a character study of the reasons why Karn's lied to Parshuram, the author just tries to impose that whatever Karn did was wrong. He never points out or utters a single word about the exclusivity of education to Bhramins and Kshatriyas which made Karn lie to Parshuram. It was fear of getting rejected on the basis of caste why Karn lied to Parshuram. On one hand in this book we have Dron who has all kind of vendetta and counter counter-violence in his mind but enough excuses and explainations are given around the circumstances which gave rise to the vendetta and counter-violence in Dron's mind. But in the same book we have Karn who is clearly a victim of sick mentality of Dronacharya and the casteist education policy of Parshuram. There is an incident in the book where through Adhirath's words author clearly states that one should stick to the limits of the horrendous caste system and Karn has no right to choose path for himself. Other absurd logics to make Karn a villan include that Karn was tamoguni and thus he was not a good candidate to get educated. So weren't there king at that time who were tamoguni and got education just on the basis of their castes? Was Karn the only tamoguni born in Dwapar Yug? Wasn't Duryodhan a tamoguni? Why did he get education then? The other thing author says that Karn wanted to rival Arjun that's why he wanted to learn archery. So if Arjun has a rivalry with someone it's acceptable but if Karn wanted to be a rival of Arjun then that's wrong. The worst thing which author did is saying that it's just the infirority complex in Karn's mind that he can't accept anybody calling him "Sutputra", while in his own book many characters use it as casteist slur. Author clearly stands with the caste system prevailed back then.
2 Stars.
Some redeeming factors which makes this book a little bit readable includes the characterization of Dron. I have never read this much in depth study of Dron's character. If broken down the character of Dron can be divided into several parts like first a seeker of knowledge who is also a struggling householder and trying to make the ends meet, then he becomes an opportunist and a man who seeks revenge and power, and in the end indirectly he becomes a man who is also a reason behind the catastrophic war. In some parts he is also presented as a counterpart of Dhritrashtra who solely focuses on his son's welfare, but in these parts what differs him from Dhritrashtra is that his conscience is not as blind as Dhritarashtra's and he is constantly at war with his conscience.
What made the first part of this series a great book was inclusion of politics in the course of events which substituted the flawless character development added positively to the flow of the story. But in this part politics enters the picture in the very last part of the book when Yadav power comes in play and this part is the most interesting part of the book. Incendents in the book are needlessly over-stretched and they are very boring. Like the incident where Bheem is poisoned by Duryodhan and thrown into the river this incident was so much dragged that after a point it becomes very boring and in this incident I also felt that dialogues were also very repetitive and uninteresting. Other problems lies in the characterization of Pandavs and Kauravs. They are nothing more than cardboard cutouts in the book and nothing related to them was remotely interesting. Yudhisthir is shown very imbecile and he is very disinterested in being a king and even making political alliances the only thing that's shown dear to him is his "spotless" image. He is shown so stupid that it look like the Yadav power backing up Pandavs are the puppeteers who want to make Yudhishthir king for their own good. Bheem is shown as glutton who always eats and loves excercise and sleeping which is very cliché. I think no one can give justice to the character of Bheem as S.L. Bhyrappa did in 'Parv', it was the only book based on the Mahabharat which showed Bheem as a multi-dimensional character. Nakul and Sehdev are non-existing and barely gets any role to play in the book. Only Arjun gets a decent character development among the five brothers. His quest for a teacher who quenches his thirst for knowledge is wonderfully shown and I hope this character troupe is carried forward in future books.
In an interview Kohliji said that for him Karn is the villian in the Mahabharat and not the glorified hero he is commonly portrayed. When I heard this in his interview I was excited to read his take on Karn. But all of my excitement was destroyed when I read the unreasonably harsh and out of logic character development he gives to Karn in this book. I mean Karn was not a perfect man and even I feel that sometimes he is over-glorified and there is no problem with the idea of making him a villain. But making someone a villain takes the reasons which made him so not the excuses which author gives are nothing short of lame and despicable. Rather than being a character study of the reasons why Karn's lied to Parshuram, the author just tries to impose that whatever Karn did was wrong. He never points out or utters a single word about the exclusivity of education to Bhramins and Kshatriyas which made Karn lie to Parshuram. It was fear of getting rejected on the basis of caste why Karn lied to Parshuram. On one hand in this book we have Dron who has all kind of vendetta and counter counter-violence in his mind but enough excuses and explainations are given around the circumstances which gave rise to the vendetta and counter-violence in Dron's mind. But in the same book we have Karn who is clearly a victim of sick mentality of Dronacharya and the casteist education policy of Parshuram. There is an incident in the book where through Adhirath's words author clearly states that one should stick to the limits of the horrendous caste system and Karn has no right to choose path for himself. Other absurd logics to make Karn a villan include that Karn was tamoguni and thus he was not a good candidate to get educated. So weren't there king at that time who were tamoguni and got education just on the basis of their castes? Was Karn the only tamoguni born in Dwapar Yug? Wasn't Duryodhan a tamoguni? Why did he get education then? The other thing author says that Karn wanted to rival Arjun that's why he wanted to learn archery. So if Arjun has a rivalry with someone it's acceptable but if Karn wanted to be a rival of Arjun then that's wrong. The worst thing which author did is saying that it's just the infirority complex in Karn's mind that he can't accept anybody calling him "Sutputra", while in his own book many characters use it as casteist slur. Author clearly stands with the caste system prevailed back then.
2 Stars.
January 22, 2018
describes the childhood of pandavs and kauravs quite aptly. Introduces Krishna who is already famous by wining heart of everyone and also got me new insight into Dronacharya (never knew his story and his revenge) and Drupad (how draupadi was reborn of fire).
For my complete reviews, check out readabook.in.
One book a week review. :)
For my complete reviews, check out readabook.in.
One book a week review. :)
October 22, 2018
Adhikar (Hardcover) by Narendra Kohli -Mahasamar-1 is Volume 2 of the series of modern depicting of epic Mahabharata. It starts from the time of arrival of the Pandavas to Kuru Kingdom with capital Hastinapur and ends at declaration of Yudhisthar eldest of the five Pandav brothers as the Yuvraj of the Kingdom. The characters of Pandavs- Kind Pandu, wives Kunti and Madri, children -Yudhisthar, Bhim, Arjun, Nakul, Sahdev, Kaurvas-parents- Dhritrashtra, Gandhari, siblings- important amongst one hundred siblings- Duryodhana, Dusshasan, sister Dusshala, his uncle Shakuni living in the palace. For all round development of these Princes enters in style- brahmin Dronacharya student of Parashuram. He teaches them to take out their fallen in a well. The children relate the story of their grandfather Bhishma who calls for Dronacharya requests him to sit and take the responsibility of grooming the Princes. Kripacharya, the Priest and religious head of Kurus is the brother in law of Dronacharya. Son of Dronachaya- Ashwasthama joins the class with the Princes. Arjun is devoted to learning the bow and arrow. Yudhisthar - bhala, Bhim- Duryodhan- Gada. After the Princess complete their education and training in the use of arms and ammunition, Dronacharya demands his fees. The Princes question what is his demand. The reply is arrest King Drupad, tie him and bring him to Hastinapur. Here another sub-plot comes before the Princess- King Durpad and Dronacharya are classmate from a Gurukul and after completing their education clash with one another. Kaurav Princes take an army to capture King Drupad but fail. The Pandav Princes attack Drupad and defeat and tie him with a rope and bring him before Dronacharya. Shri Krishna also takes entry in the story. Karna who gains knowledge by informing Parashuram that he is a Brahmin which is unlawful, gets a scourge that he will forget this knowledge at the time when needs it most. Eklavya a low caste child makes a mud statue of Dronacharya and learns to use the bow and arrow. The charming story states that so that the best Bow user is Arjun, Dronacharya asks for the thumb of Eklavya as Guru Dakshina which he promptly gives to Drona. The narrative is written in western style of questing and reasoning. The present edition of the Book is quite costly. Still, as these books depict Indian culture, these should be translated in other Indian and foreign languages so that the international reader community is aware of the human and moral values of India. It is a must read for all.
Trendsetter
Trendsetter
August 19, 2024
This is second part of 8 part Mahasamar series based on Mahabharata.
I read "Bandhanam" the first part published by Sahitya Akademi, many years ago but realized there are translated versions for the other books too only recently.
In the second part the story of how Pandavas were treated in Hastinapuram by Kauravas and how Drutharashtar, Gandhari are blindly driven by greed and advised and controlled by Shakuni to make Duryodhanan the future king. Also, treats how a Guru like Drona who is motivated by hatred and revenge in his mind than true desire for development and fulfilment of full potential of his disciples is already sowing the seeds for enmity between Kauravas and Pandavas rather than reconciling them and making sure they treat each other with respect and love. The use of Kaurava princes to have his revenge with King Durpadan, he has already making an enemy of a powerful king only to satisfy his ego taking revenge. With a blind king, who's playing all the dirty games to keep power to himself and his son, let all this happen and Bhishma though realizes all these wrongs and how it's going to affect his dynasty keeps quiet and let it all happen.
Towards the end of the book, Krishna makes his appearance and how presence of a suddenly powerful relatives like Yadava kingdom makes Drutharashtar to agree to make Yudishtar to be officially declare as the future king though he really didn't want to make his own son the future king.
The good thing about this series is, the author only has to focus on this family story of Mahabharata and can go in all detail explaining many things that's missing in Mahabharata or taken understood. Also, the author made all his characters mere human beings unlike some devas or gods etc. Compared to Parva this whole series is much longer, though both books try to humanize the Mahabharata and its characters.
I read "Bandhanam" the first part published by Sahitya Akademi, many years ago but realized there are translated versions for the other books too only recently.
In the second part the story of how Pandavas were treated in Hastinapuram by Kauravas and how Drutharashtar, Gandhari are blindly driven by greed and advised and controlled by Shakuni to make Duryodhanan the future king. Also, treats how a Guru like Drona who is motivated by hatred and revenge in his mind than true desire for development and fulfilment of full potential of his disciples is already sowing the seeds for enmity between Kauravas and Pandavas rather than reconciling them and making sure they treat each other with respect and love. The use of Kaurava princes to have his revenge with King Durpadan, he has already making an enemy of a powerful king only to satisfy his ego taking revenge. With a blind king, who's playing all the dirty games to keep power to himself and his son, let all this happen and Bhishma though realizes all these wrongs and how it's going to affect his dynasty keeps quiet and let it all happen.
Towards the end of the book, Krishna makes his appearance and how presence of a suddenly powerful relatives like Yadava kingdom makes Drutharashtar to agree to make Yudishtar to be officially declare as the future king though he really didn't want to make his own son the future king.
The good thing about this series is, the author only has to focus on this family story of Mahabharata and can go in all detail explaining many things that's missing in Mahabharata or taken understood. Also, the author made all his characters mere human beings unlike some devas or gods etc. Compared to Parva this whole series is much longer, though both books try to humanize the Mahabharata and its characters.
May 26, 2021
शीर्षक के अनुरूप ही पांडवों को उनके अधिकार प्राप्ति की कहानी को समेटे हुए है ये खंड ― पांडव बालकों के हस्तिनापुर आगमन से शुरू होकर युधिष्ठिर के युवराजभिषेक होने तक की कहानी।
महाभारत की कहानी तो किसी के लिए नयी नहीं है, बस पात्रों और घटनाओं का एनालिसिस लोग भिन्न-भिन्न तरीके से करते हैं।इस अंक की खासियत है ― गुरु द्रोण का चरित्र-चित्रण। उनपर काफी कुछ लिखा गया है। वे एक नकारात्मक चरित्र के रूप में उभर कर आते हैं। वहीं उनके शत्रु, राजा द्रुपद की कोई गलती नहीं दिखाई गई है। द्रुपद पुत्र और पुत्री के यज्ञ से उत्पन्न होने की मान्यता को भी कहानी में अच्छे तरीके से एक्सप्लेन कर ये दिखाया गया है कि ये एक सिंबॉलिक जेस्चर था।
कृष्ण की एंट्री और उनका पांडवों से परिचय भी इसी अंक में होता है।
यह अंक प्रथम अंक की तुलना में थोड़ा कमजोर पड़ता है लेकिन गुरु द्रोण का चरित्र-चित्रण इस अंक की कमी को पूरा कर देता है।
The best line from the book is ―
"जो व्यक्ति अपने सुखों के वंचित होने से डरता है, वह जीवन के सम्मुख कभी वीरता पूर्वक खड़ा नहीं हो सकता ।"
May 15, 2020
Amazing book tried to maintain the interest of reader till end..
The book is very interesting and hold the reader till end,but in comparison of its first part "BANDHAN" it can't make the interest of reader
The book is very interesting and hold the reader till end,but in comparison of its first part "BANDHAN" it can't make the interest of reader
June 27, 2021
सराहनीय प्रस्तुति
यह महाउपन्यास एक महान रचेता की महान कृति है। नीति और धर्म ऐसा सचित्र वर्णन लिखने वाले कथाकार विरले होते हैं। हाल ही में नरेंद्र कोहली जी का कोविड की वजह से देहांत हो गया।
यह महाउपन्यास एक महान रचेता की महान कृति है। नीति और धर्म ऐसा सचित्र वर्णन लिखने वाले कथाकार विरले होते हैं। हाल ही में नरेंद्र कोहली जी का कोविड की वजह से देहांत हो गया।
November 13, 2018
Mahasamar series is undoubtedly the best explanation of mahabharat. The way Mr. Kohli has written it, is enchanting.
May 20, 2021
Awesome. Mahabharat redefined..
September 15, 2020
I will not write about individual volumes but write about the experience of reading al the 9 vols last year. It is a great achievement and reading it once is not enough. Will read again.
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